Arnold Schwarzenegger, 63, — a.k.a. The (ex) Governator, or just “Ah-nold” to his friends and legions of stand-up comics worldwide — has terminated many things in a long and winding career that has seem him go from body building dynamo, to action film superstar, to California’s political head honcho. But the impending termination of his 25-year marriage to Maria Shriver, 55, may prove to be his most strenuous and difficult battle yet.
Unlike many celebrity break-ups — many of which seem to have the marital shelf-life equivalent of a carton of milk — the news of Schwarzenegger and Shriver’s divorce is being met in the blogosphere with widespread surprise.
Admittedly, this dismay is hardly because couple had one of those storybook marriages that “seemed perfect.” It’s more likely because, one would have to figure that if there were anyweak points in this particular union, it would have been derailed long, long ago given the frenzied media scrutiny that both spouses have lived under for decades. In other words: if it’s lasted this long, and endured so much pressure, it should be unbreakable.
But that’s not the case — and hasn’t been for a while. According to some sources, Shriver wanted to divorce back in 2009, but put that plan aside after her mother died. She then thought about it again this past January — just as Schwarzenegger was preparing to leave office — but then her father died, which put the divorce on hold yet again.
“They actually seemed to have had one of the more functional Kennedy marriages,” a family insider told the Boston Herald. “But like any long-term marriage, you either grow together or you grow apart.” Reports that Schwarzenegger has a penchant for groping women — something that he admits and Shriver laments — may also have contributed to the marital drift.
The couple were married in 1986 at glamorous ceremony at Kennedy Compound, and have four children: Katherine, 21, Christina, 19, Patrick, 17 and Christopher, 13.
Presuming the divorce goes ahead, one of the next big stories waiting to emerge is the size of the divorce settlement. That’s because under California’s community property laws, Shriver would be entitled to half of Schwarzenegger estimated net worth of $400 million.
That’s quite a chunk of change. Even for a Kennedy.
Add A Comment